Saturday, July 12, 2014

Morton v Leake, Lineup, The Kid, El Coffee, Tony Watson, Looking For Help?

Charlie Morton (5-9, 3.10) faces Mike Leake (7-7, 3.42) tonight.

Charlie is coming off a very strong start, a seven inning, one-hit shutout effort against the Cards and Adam Wainwright. He's been strong since June, going 4-2 with a 2.80 ERA and 49 strikeouts in his last seven starts with an opponent BA of just .198. Morton is 5-7 with a 4.12 ERA in 15 career starts against the Reds. In this year's only outing against the Redlegs, he lost a 5-2 decision to Alfredo Simon back in April.

Leake is a workhorse kinda guy. He's been getting swings and misses lately with 29 K in his last 29 IP, and he doesn't hurt himself with walks. Leake was red hot in May, but the last six weeks has been more hit-or-miss. His last couple of games haven't been all that strong, though he has won his last five starts. He's 6-3 with a 3.40 ERA in 17 lifetime appearances against the Bucs.

Lineup: Greg Polanco RF, Travis Snider LF, Cutch CF, Neil Walker 2B, Russ martin C, Pedro 3B, Gaby Sanchez 1B, Jordy Mercer SS and Morton. Gaby and Travis get starts tonight.

The game starts at 7:15 and will be aired by Fox Sports and 93.7 The Fan.
  • Neil Walker has to start over; his 12 game hitting streak ended last night. 
  • We're curious to see how how Gregory Polanco deals with his first bump as a pro. He's 3-for-21 in his last six games, with all three hits coming on Tuesday.
  • The players voted Tony Watson onto Pirates leadership council, replacing jason Grilli. The council gives the players' input to Clint Hurdle.
  • Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review has a report on some bullpen arms the Bucs may move on to shore up the relief corps.
  • Our prayers to Brewer SS Jean Segura; his nine-month old son just passed away in the Dominican. That's about the worst thing that could happen to a father.

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